Claims Conference Report -
Vanishing Witnesses: An Urgent Analysis of the Declining Population of Holocaust Survivors

Vanishing Witnesses: An Urgent Analysis of the Declining Population of Holocaust Survivors offers a sobering look at the rapidly diminishing number of Jewish Holocaust survivors worldwide. Drawing on decades of data from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, the report reveals that nearly half of the current survivor population will be gone by 2031, with a projected 90% decline within 15 years. Regional disparities further highlight the urgency: Israel is expected to lose 40% of its survivors within five years, while the former Soviet Union and Western Europe will see declines of over 50% and 35%, respectively. These figures underscore the critical importance of preserving survivor voices before they vanish.

The following is an executive summary of the report. For the full report, click here.

This report — Vanishing Witnesses: An Urgent Analysis of the Declining Population of Holocaust Survivors — presents an in-depth and pressing look at the population of Jewish Holocaust survivors, based on data the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) has amassed from its decades of advocacy on behalf of this community. This includes survivors who receive direct payments or social services funded by the organization. These direct assessments of mortality rates among the survivor population are used to provide population projections through the year 2040.

Vanishing Witnesses reveals new information about Holocaust survivors:

—We will lose nearly 50% of Holocaust survivors by 2031, 70% of Holocaust survivors in 10 years and 90% of Holocaust survivors within 15 years. This analysis indicates the global population of Holocaust survivors will drop by 70% by 2035. The number is expected to be 21,300 by 2040.

—Mortality rates for Holocaust survivors vary greatly across the world, causing some areas to lose their survivors at faster rates than others. For example, Israel is projected to lose 40% of its survivor population in five years. The survivor population in countries that make up the former Soviet Union (FSU) will decline by just over 50% in that time, while the population in Western Europe will decline by about 35%.

These projections based on the most recently available Claims Conference data will be updated regularly to incorporate the latest information on survivor mortality.

Source: “Vanishing Witnesses: An Urgent Analysis of the Declining Population of Holocaust Survivors,” Claims Conference, (April 2025).